Jack for elevating forms and floor structures employed in pouring concrete



March 23, 1954 R. PATTERSON 2,673,065 JACK FOR ELEVATING FORMS AND FLOOR STRUCTURES EMPLOYED IN POURING CONCRETE Filed March 22, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 62 V\ fi% I: z

3 K ,5, as 2 i GEE M 50 66 \s:3 I 44 INVEN TOR.

March 23, 1954 R. I. PATTERSON 2,673,065 JACK FOR ELEVATING FORMS AND FLOSR STRUCTURES EMPLOYED IN POURING CONCRETE Filed March 22 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 "//////////////////////////////////////n4 23 70 2/ 28 82 I 69 8 al/ fl 4 26 g /7 l?/////////////////l//I///////l/////////A j M INVENTOR.

Roy A PATTERSON BY h R. l. PATTERSON ATING March 23, 1954 JACK FOR ELEV FORMS AND FLOOR STRUCTURES EMPLOYED IN POURING CONCRETE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 22 1950 INVENTOR. ROY A PATTERSON Patented Mar. 23, 1954 JACK FOR ELEVATIN G FORMS AND FLOOR STRUCTURES EMPLOYED IN POURING CONCRETE Boy I. Patterson, Minot Builders of Minnesota Robbinsdale, Minn., assignor to Supply 00., Inc., a corporation Application March 22, 1950, Serial No. 151,060

8 Claims. 1

My invention relates to a jack for elevating forms and floor structures employed in pouring concrete as concrete buildings are erected, and has for its object to provide a compact jack structure in which all of the elements for uniting the clamp members to the jack post, as the jack is operated, including a sealed chamber adapted to receive air under high pressure, are formed in a single package.

Heretofore efforts have been made to provide jack structures operable upon a vertical rod or tube embedded in the concrete and frequently referred to as a jack post, but the parts of this arrangement have been widely separated and are not of sufficient strength and durability to withstand the frequent and very high pressures to which the construction is subjected, and particularly are not adapted to fast or pulsating operation.

I have discovered a highly practical and eflicient type of jack, wherein all the parts are related directly with or connected to a pair of annular plate-like members substantially in contact, which surround the jack post and provide between them the air pressure chamber. In this arrangement there are two sets of clamping bits, one set fulcrumed against portions connected with the outer plate member and the other set fulcrumed against parts of the inner plate member, both sets being controlled by springs united to the inner plate.

Each of the bits of each of the two sets is provided with a curved knife-like edge of hardened steel, each adapted to engage a circumferential element of the jack post, but the engagement being made in vertically slightly separated hori- :zontal planes.

Each of the plates is provided with a central depending sleeve, the sleeve of the upper plate directly surrounding the jack post and the sleeve of the lower plate surrounding the sleeve of the upper plate so that relative movement of the two plates may be effected by introducing high pres sure gas into the annular space between the two plates.

The relative movement between the two plates is against the balanced pressure of three strong compression springs on bolts which are rigidly connected with the outer plate, hence when air under pressure is introduced into the pressure chamber the outer plate with whatever load it carries is moved upwardly against the pressure of the springs and the lower plate is held immovable downwardly by reason of the gripping contact of the bit edges against the jack post. When the pressure is released the second set of bits prevents any movement, of the outer plate downwardly so that the compressed springs cause the inner plate to have a follow-up movement.

The amount of movement each time is relatively small, but the introduction and release of air may be made rapidly and simultaneously to each of the jacks employed in a given building so the forms and floor portions will be caused to crawl slowly up the numerous jack posts for that purpose.

Except for the connection with springs, the bits of each set are entirely unconnected but merely operate between fulcrum points at their outer ends and contactswith the jack post at their inner ends.

It is a principal object of my invention, therefore, to provide a jack for lifting forms and walls during erection of concrete buildings in which all the parts shall be put together in a single compact package. 6

Another object is to provide a lifting jack composed of a pair of nesting plates which form a pressure chamber and which are held together by resilient means, and two sets of clamping bits which form means of alternately anchoring one of the plates to the jack rod during movement of the other plate, together with means for resiliently biasing the active ends of the bits at a proper biting angle with the jack rod.

Another object is to provide a lifting jack composed of a pair of nesting plates which form a pressure chamber, held together by a depending resilient connection to provide an unimpeded upper surface, together with two sets of clamping bits positioned beneath the plates and arranged to engage a jack rod at a relatively close distance from the bottom plate, together with reinforcing rods extending from an outer edge of the top plate to a collar surrounding the lower plate immediately beneath the clamping bits to assure correct alignment of the jack with respect to the jack rod.

The full objects and advantages of my invention will appear in connection with the detailed description thereof given in the following specification, and the novel features of the invention by which the aforesaid important and advantageous results are obtained will be particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings illustrating an application of my invention in one of its forms:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of my invention taken from underneath, with the jack post or rod embedded in the concrete in section, and some other parts in section or broken away;

Fig. 2 is asectional view taken on line 2-2 o Fig. 1. r c

has a level annulartop-.surface -M.

'ing member 24.

Fig.3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation view showing the manner in which the jack is made to freely contact the framework secured to and adapted to raise the concrete-form and the flooring.

Fig. 5 is atop plan'view of what is shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a plan view of an arrangement of con crete forms and flooring of a,complete-building structure.

Fig. '7 illustrates somewhat in detail the compressor, tank and valve and operating means for pulsating the pressure to the jacks on the floor.

Referring to Figs. 1-3, the jackproper consists of a top plate is having a relatively fiat lower surface i2 which is surroundedtby.aidenending flange 15. The upper surface of plate l0, designated at 13, may be smooth as shown in'Fig: 5 or it may contain depressions l5 to give a good gripping surface. i -Depending from the centerwof plate I0 is a sleeve lhwhich is exteriorly threaded toreceive .a stop-nut [9.

Within the .annularnange l6 of top member Lis formedan annular-chamber 20. 'In this chamber! is mounted =agbottom annular plate 2 i,:-Figs. ZandzS, which is provided with a sleeve -,22. The sleeve '2zrsurrounds and fits closely. the

outside of the sleeve [8. The bottom-platei2i Upon the surface 23 rests -an annular sealingmember 25 which is providedwith .an inner circular sealing lip :25 and.an;.outer circular sealing lip "26. fIn

. The threadedopening extending through the boss 29 is adapted to haveconnecteditherewith an air' hose "34, Fig.4, which enters a valve box 35, Fig. '7, from :which compressed air is fed through pipe 36 from the compressedair tank 13-1, Fig. 7. Thevalvewithin-the valve b0X35iiS controlled by astem member-'38 which 'is contacted and operated by the'part '39 of a rocking lever .423 journalled at M on a stand '42. The rocking i effected by a cam member :43 on a driven shaft M mounted on a stand '45.

The shaft .44 is .driven quite rapidly, which means rapid opening and closing of the valve and a quite rapid pulsing feed of compressed air to the pipe 34.

Although this is indicated in 'thedrawingsas a feed to a single jack member, it will bennderstood that this pulsating feed will simultaneously go to all of the jacks effectively positioned to operateto raise the entire form structure indicated schematically at Mi on Fig. :6. With this arrangement the entire form structure and the connected flooring, as indicated *in Fig. '6, will'be slowly lifted while the pulsating parts of com.- pressed air are being delivered to :the lifting chambers of the several jacks.

In each case the compressed air in all of the annular chambers -20 will first seal those chamhers against leakage by reason of the sealing lips 25 and 26 in each compression chamber and then will raise the outer or upper plate I'D and the parts carried thereby.

As best shown in Figs. 1 and 3, threaded into the flange portion I6 and extending through bosses 48, 49 and 58 on lower plate 21 are a series, in practice preferably three, of bolt members 5| each, of which is provided with ahead 52 over a -vvasher' 53. Between washers'53 and the bottom sion springs 56.

secured toxtop plate member H] and slide freely faces 54 of laterally extended bosses 48, 49, 59 on the lower plate member 2| are strong compres- The bolts 5! are thus rigidly through openings 51 in the boss portions 43, 49, of the lowerv plate member 2 l The upper plate .member ID and the lower plate member 2| are 'thus free .to'move-r'elatively in the direction along the jack posteor rod 58.

To insure that the sets of plates as they are L being movedwvillinot tip or wobble, but will move to be separated uniformly in horizontal planes, I'provide a plurality ofbrace members 53, 60 and 61 which are secured--respectively by bolts 62, Fig. 1, to the-broadface of theflange portion it of the upper-plate member H). The other ends of the bars 59, fillandfil are rigidly-secured to a collar member63 which, as shown in Fig. 3,

surrounds the jack'post '58'at 64. Since these brace rods are secured tothe upper plate memher If), thecollar 63' to which theyare connected must rise and-'fall-as the upper plate member In rises and falls but will holdthat plate member and that in turn will hold the lower plate member "2! to move relatively always held horizontal.

It will be obvious that for this relative move- -ment to be effective there must be means to hold one or the other of the two plates "forming the compression I chamber 20 immovable whilethe other of said plates is being moved. This means consists of twosets of 'clamping'bits, one'set designated as 65'being shown in Figs. '1 'and'2,

and the other set designated as 66 being shown in Figs l and3. The bits of the two sets are substantially identical except that the bits of set 65 are somewhat longer-than the bits of set 56.

Also, although'the active edges of the bits against the jack post are close to one another and form altogether a substantially unitary pack- "age, the bits ofset' 65 are somewhat'fai'ther removed along the jackpostfromthe outside'face of the bottom plate 'thanare the bits of set 66, only enough, however, to get the post-engaging bits of one settopass the'bits of the otherset. Otherwise the same description will apply to the bits of each set.

'Referringto the bits asshown in Figs. 1 and '2, each of them comprises a bar of metal having a top 6'! and-bottom spaced therefrom to give a bar of sufiicient strength for thepurpose. These shanks attheir't'ops have a fulcrum point 69, which is in line with the top 61 of the bit and which engages a fulcrum or socket seat 10 formed'in hollow ear-like'mem'bers H cast on the flange 16 formed ontop plate Iii, all as shown in Figs. 1 and '2.

The bits '66, shown in Figs. '1 and 3, are formed with top and bottom faces 12 and i3 and'a fulcrum point 14 in line with the top I2 which engages a socket 15 formed on bottom plate '2! at ae'repes Likewise all the bitsof set 66 are provided with a similar curved sharpened edge 11.

In each instance the sharpened edge is produced by a sloping portion 18 at the top of the bit and a much more angularly disposed sloping edge 19 at the bottom of the bit. I

As clearly shown, the bits of set 65 and also of set 66 extend downwardly to engage the jack post 58 at a considerable angle with their edges 16 or H at a considerable angle but still at a broadly obtuse angle. Each of the bits is held in operative position by strong tension springs 89 which are secured at their upper ends by a loop 8| passing through an opening 82 in the rib 28.

Near the faces 18 and 19 at the inner ends of the bits 65 and 66 a hole 96 extends through the bit. A cotter pin 91 is forced through this hole with an eye-head 98 adapted to receive the other looped end 99 of the spring 80. The ends of the cotter pin 91, indicated at I and I M, are turned back from the under side of the bits 55 and 65, which, while being otherwise unattached, are in effect pivoted at their thrust points and held in engagement with the rod by the springs 89.

The manner in which this combination of a closely united single package jack arrangement operates will be readily understood. When compressed air is injected into the chamber 28 it immediately puts pressure in opposite directions upon the top plate Ill and through the sealing member 24 upon the bottom plate 2!. The bottom plate will be held from moving downwardly by the sets of bits 69 which engage with their sharpened ends the jack post 58 and are thus retained in a stationary exerted by the compressed air therefore must be applied to move up the top plate I9, which can be moved upwardly with its load only by compressing the springs 56 about bolts rigidly connected with top plate In.

When, however, the pressure within chamber is released the top plate I9 is held from moving downwardly by engagement of the set of bits with the jack post 58, and the springs 59 on the bolts 5|, which have been compressed by the lifting of the top plate I9, will operate to push the bottom plate 2| upwardly to again engage the top plate.

This action can take place very rapidly with a. multiplicity of pulse-like strokes which may in continuous operation raise all the jacks and the parts connected with the jacks a distance of an inch or more in one continuance of operation, after which a layer of fresh concrete is applied to the concrete top within the forms, equivalent in depth to forms and the other parts have been raised by the pulsing operation of the jacks.

In Figs. 4 and 5 the very simple manner of connection of the top plate Id of the jack with the parts to be raised is shown. A frame designated by the general number I96 comprises two vertical supports 83 and 84 which are secured by nails, screws or the like to two pairs of tran verse beam members spaced apart vertically as indicated in Fig. 4. The top beam members85 and 86 are positioned to straddle the jack post 58, as shown in Fig. 5, and rest upon the upper surface I3 of the top plate In. No securing means is necessary as the upward thrust of the top plate in the operation of the jack will be distributed uniformly along the central portions of beams 85 and 85. I

The'vertical beams 83 and 84 are secured to other transverse members 85 as shown in Fig. 4, which in turn hold them in parallel relation.

position. All of the force I whatever distance the annular member and 6 The members 83 and 84 adjacent floor sections 81 and also by transversely extending sets of ribs 88, 89 and 99 on one side and 9|, 92 and 93 on the other side are secured to a section of the concrete receiving form 94. I

A continuous support of the forms is provided in this manner and also similarly a support for the various floor sections and the jack members will be positioned over various parts of the concrete receiving forms so that the appli cation of air pressure on the jacks simultaneously will raise both the forms and the floors just fast enough so the concrete being poured after each raising will have time to set before the bottom of the forms 94 reach that increment of poured concrete.

The advantages of my invention will have appeared in connection with the foregoing specification. The primary advantage resides in the fact that my jack is in a single compact package With the parts forming the pressure chamber nested together substantially in contact and all the other parts directly connected thereto so that the entire jack apparatus when set up in operation about the jack rod will have a maximum depth of less than six inches. 1

This is a very great advance over those forms of jacks in which the various parts are widely separated and the length of the jack may be as much as several feet, allof which makes it difficult if not impossible to mount a large number of jacks for a comparatively large structure so that they may effectively be used simultaneously and together.

Another advantage resides in the fact that the sets of bits used with myjack are actually not permanently secured to any part of the jack but have at most only an easily removable connection with a spring member and the ends of the bits get their effective support against open sockets found in the respective top plate and bottom plate making up the jack proper.

I claim:

1. In combination with a rod anchored in the cement of a wall structure being erected, a head, comprising a pair of vertically disposed annular disks surrounding said rod, each formed with coacting depending annular flanges and relatively movable with respect to each other and with respect to the rod, said disks forming a chamber between them, means for delivering air under pressure to said chamber, a member within said chamber for sealing the same against air leakage during delivery of said air, means for biasing the lower disk in the direction of the upper disk, the outer flange of the upper disk bein provided with a multiplicity of ear-like socket members, a set of freely movable bits fulcrumed in said sockets having inner edges positioned engageable with the rod, a second set of bits fulcrumed against the outer flange of the bottom disk and having portions engageable with the rod, and two sets of springs, one set connecting the bottom with the first set of bits, and the other set connecting the bottom member and with the second set of bits.

2. A jack for use in elevating concrete forms and flooring connected therewith while concrete is being poured which comprises, a rod anchored in the concrete, a top plate having a depending central sleeve surrounding the rod and having an outer depending flange; said sleeve and flange forming an annular chamber, a bottom plate seated within said chamber with its bottom sure in turn are secured to face closely contiguous to the top surface of the top plate and having a depending central sleeve surrounding the sleeve of the top plate and an outer flange engaging outer flange of the top plate, means for delivering fluid under pressure between the two plates, two sets of bits, each having parts engageable with the rod, one set of bits having free socket supports at their outer ends against the bottom plate and engaging the rod at their inner ends to hold the bottom plate against downward movement While the top plate is being elevated, and the other set of bits having parts engageable with the top plate and the rod to hold the bottom plate against downward movement while the top plate is being elevated, and means for elevating the bottom plate.

3. A jack for use in elevating concrete forms and flooring connected therewith while concrete is being poured which comprises, a rod anchored in the concrete, a top plate surrounding the rod r and having depending flanges forming a chamber below the lower surface of the top plate, a bottom plate surrounding the rod and adapted to seat within said chamber with its top surface closely contiguous to the bottom surface of the top plate, spring means having fixed connection with the top plate and sliding connection with the bottom plate tending to hold the two plat-es together, means for deliverin fluid under pressure between the two plates to separate them, two sets of rod engaging bits having outer and inner ends, the outer ends of the first of said sets engaging the flange of the top plate and the inner ends engaging the jack rod beneath the bottom plate, the outer ends of the second or said sets engaging the bottom plate with the inner ends engaging the jack rod between the ends of the first set, and independent resilient means engaging each bit adjacent its inner end to hold the inner end in contact with the jack rod.

4. A jack for use in elevating concrete forms and flooring connected therewith while concrete is being poured which comprises, a rod anchored in the concrete, a top plate having depending flanges forming a chamber below the lower surface of the top plate, a bottom plate adapted to seat within said chamber with its top surface closely contiguous to the bottom surface of the top plate, a series of bolt-like members rigidly connected to the to the bottom plate, compression springs on said bolt members operable upon the two plates so as to tend to bring them together, means for delivering fluid. under pressure between the two plates whereby the plates will be separated and the spring means compressed, and two sets of bits both sets having parts engageable with the rod, one set having thrust bearing against a part on the upper plate, the other set having a thrust bearing against a part of the lower plate.

5. In combination with a rod anchored in the concrete of a wall being erected, an upper plate having a central sleeve surrounding the rod and a depending flange about the outer limits thereof to form an annular chamber, a slide surrounding the rod at a point removed from the sleeve, brace rods extending from the slide to the flange of the outer member, a lower plate having a sleeve surrounding the sleeve of the upper plate and a depending flange adapted to engage the flange of the upper plate, and two sets of bits each bit having a gripping edge engaging the rod, one set being fulcrumed against a part of the upper plate, the other set being fulcrumed against a part of the lower plate, the arrangement being top plate and slidably related such that the two plates may be separated by movement of the upper plate upwardly and be brought together by movement of the lower plate upwardly.

6. A jack for supporting and raising a building form on a jack rod, comprising a top plate encompassing the jack rod and adapted to engage the building form, a flange depending from adjacent the periphery of said plate and forming a chamber below the surface of said plate, a second plate surrounding the jack rod and adapted to seat within the peripheral flange of the top plate and forming a lower surface for the chamber, means for intermittently delivering fluid under pressure between said plates to provide relative movement between said plates, a resilient follow-up connection between said plates which is placed under stress with each movement of the top plate and provides relative movement of the second plate, two sets of clamping bits supported beneath the second plate and having sharpened inner ends engageable with the jack rod, one set of bits extending from the second plate to anchor the same to the jack rod during relative movement of the top plate, the other set of bits extending from the top plate to anchor the same to the jack rod during relative movement of the second plate, and independent spring means extending in a plane nearly parallel with the jack rod from adjacent the sharpened ends of each clamping bit of said two sets of bits to the second plate to bias the sharpened ends of said bits against the jack rod.

'7. A jack for supporting and raising a building form on a jack rod, comprising a top plate encompassing the jack rod and adapted to engage the building form, a peripheral flange depending from said plate and forming a chamber below the surface of said plate, a second plate surrounding the jack rod and adapted to seat within the peripheral flange of the top plate and forming a lower surface for the chamber, means for intermittently delivering fluid under pressure between said plates to provide relative movement between said plates, a resilient iollow-up connection between said plates which is placed under stress with each movement of the top plate and provides relative movement of the second plate, two sets of clamping bits supported beneath the second plate and having sharpened inner ends engageable with the jack rod, one set of bits extending from the second plate to anchor the same to the jack rod during relative movement of the top plate, the other set of bits extending from the top plate to anchor the same to the jack rod during relative movement of the second plate, independent spring means extending in a plane nearly parallel with the jack rod from ad- 'jacent the sharpened ends of each clamping bit of said two sets of bits to the second plate to bias the sharpened ends of said bits against the jack rod, a member embracing the jack rod beneath the second plate, and a plurality of brace rods extending from said member to one of saidplates to hold said one plate in alignment with the jack rod.

8. A jack for supporting and raising a building form on a jack rod, comprising a top plate surrounding the jack rod and formed witha depending peripheral flange to compose a cavity on the under-side of said plate, a bottom plate surrounding said rod and adapted to nest within said cavity contiguous to the top-plate, and with the top plate forming a chamber, means for conducting a pressurized fluid to and from said chamber to provide movement of the top plate relative to the bottom plate, sealing means within said chamber and carried by one of said plates to prevent escape of fluid from said chamber when the top plate is moved relative to the bottom plate, a resilient follow-up connection between said plates, and two sets of rod engaging bits having their inner ends engaging the jack rod in alternate side-by-side relationship with each other at substantially the same area on the jack rod, one of said sets of bits supported at their outer ends by the bottom plate to support said plate on the jack rod when the top plate is 10 elevated, the other of said sets of bits supported at their outer ends by the top plate to support said plate on the jack rod during the follow-up movement of the bottom plate.

ROY I. PATTERSON.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,649,674 Egan Nov. 15. 1927 2,016,575 Nemec et a1 Oct. 8, 1935 

